Thursday, May 28, 2009

Pui Chingri -- Pohi Saag with Shrimp

“On the subject of spinach: divide into little piles. Rearrange again into new piles. After five of six maneuvers, sit back and say you are full.”Delia Ephron from How To Eat Like A Child

There was a phase last year when I was unable to cook. We outsourced to a local bengali caterer and between him and D managed to feed the family okay. This guy however was pretty monotonous with his menu, he had some 4-5 items which he would repeat over the weeks and after a month you would think that alu-posto, dhokar dalna and charchari were all there is to a bengali menu.

To satisfy my cravings for authentic vegetarian bangla food a friend came to the rescue and would send over a little of whatever she cooked each week. Now she is a damn good cook and has a vast repertoire of Bengali recipes, she also likes to cook and eat well and prepares a full 6 course meal for dinner almost every day. No doubt that food from her kitchen was much awaited while the caterer's supplies languished in the refrigerator.

She used to make this Pui Chingri (Pohi Greens with Shrimp) which I fell in love with. I am sure my Ma would make it the same way but I was a typical kid regarding food choices and so though my Ma would force greens down my throat I don't have fond memories of them. Now with age I am not scared of my greens any more and even the slimy Pui has joined my list of favorites.

I have also learned greens don't make you stronger, it takes much more to grow into a person of character and strength, the 5 serving of vegetables merely sustains you in that journey.

"There was a Young Lady of Greenwich,Whose garments were border'd with Spinach;But a large spotty Calf, bit her shawl quite in half,Which alarmed that Young Lady of Greenwich."Edward Lear, English artist, writer

Pui Shaak or Pohi Saag has the scientific name of basella alba and some other fancy names like Climbing Spinach, Malabar Spinach etc. Basella alba is a fast-growing, soft-stemmed vine, reaching 10 m in length. Its thick, semi-succulent, heart-shaped leaves have a mild flavour and mucilaginous texture.

Typical of leaf vegetables, it is high in vitamin A, vitamin C, iron, and calcium. It is low in calories by volume, and high in protein per calorie. The succulent mucilage is a particularly rich source of soluble fiber, thought to remove mucus and toxins from the body. The plant is also a rich source of chlorophyll. You can apparently grow this plant from the stems/stalks and with tips from Soma I have planted some of those stalks in my backyard

Amma used to add "pasalai keerai" to prawn kuzhambu. As the green has a coolant effect she says that would reduce the heat created by the shrimp or prawns. Thats the only place I had seen greens and seafood. This combo looks interesting. Long live those anna poorani's who feed us during difficult times! I had my keralite neighbour who usd to send us goodies everyday when my mom was sick and hospitalised!

hey sandeepa,The small poem on greens was so cute :) dish looks interesting with an interesting combo. as a kid I too was a fussy fish with greens and veggies :) Over the years I grown to like it for it's healthfulness . Loved the way u've written the importance of greens in ones life..it spells so much of maturity...*I bow to u oh! wise one!!!* :)

I am trying real hard to remember my moral science classes ... but since nothing was said about not to be jealous of your friend's greens, I think I can go ahead and match that shade of pui. :-)Sandeepa ... chingri and pui ... dutoi favourite. Pui lagiyecho!? Ebar Soma ke jalabo adviser jonne. :-)

Greens and Shrimp and Potatoes looks and sounds good. Malabar Spinach/ Pui Chingri tastes so much better than spinach.They grow easily Sandeepa, try growing them. Whenever someone asks me about Palak Paneer all I can do is cringe. Why bother with that when there are so many tasty variations to cooking with greens. How do you think Chard will fare in such a dish?

Sandeepa, looks good. I too did not lobe pui saag as a child - could also have had something to do with the fact that my mom did not usually put shrimpo in it. Isn't it amazing show chingri can make anything so yummy :-)

BTW, planting swiss chard in a pot was a good idea. I planted them in the backyard last year and they were covered in slugs. I did not want to put too much slug repellant. Plan to plant in pots this year.Lets see how it goes.

The number of greens that we eat in India and the even more numerous regional names we have for them , makes it impossible to figure out what someone else is talking about...:)And you're right, it takes much much more to grow up and build character and strength!

I'm not sure why dabbawalas are so monotonous - when my mother was very sick, I distinctly remember (at age 5) we used to get a Parsi dabba (dont ask why, we had Parsi neighbours and I guess this was their way of helping). I couldnt eat DHansak for many years`after that overdose!I have never heard of shrimps and greens but seems like a great idea!

Sorry to be nitpicking, but a traditional pui saag with chingri would have a few more veggies thrown into it (given that it is a chorchori), i.e. jhingey, kumro, and according to taste - begun and mulo.

I brought some greens from Cal with me last night! They are not these but are farm fresh. My friend told me to cook it with some potatoes and I think I am going to cook it like this - in mustard oil, sans the shrimp.The greens are on a foot long shoots...I hope I am supposed to just wash and cut them up...pray that I know what I am doing! (will continue to look thru your archived to make sure there are no other recipes for something like what I have got!)I also brought jute greens, lime sampler!, green bananas, and a green fruit that I am expected to eat raw - with salt!

Authentic Bengali Pui chingri would have a few more veggies in it like Pumpkins and eggplants a must ... and White raddish or Sweet potato and Jhinge (dont know whats it called in english) ... the method however is the same like u mentioned just with a few more veggies

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Predominantly a Bong, who loves being a Mom and loves to cook among other things for the li'l one and the big ones.She loves to write too and you will find her food spiced up with stories. Mainly a collection of Bengali Recipes with other kinds thrown in, in good measure. A Snapshot of Bengali Cuisine